Fountain toothbrush



June 17, 1930. R. w. IARDEMAN FOUNTAIN TOOTHBRUSH J a y .INVENTOR.

TTORNEYS.

Patented June 17, 1930 cars STATES ROBERT W. VARIDEM'AN, OF INDEPENDENCE, MISSOURI FOUNTAIN TQOTHLBRUSH Application filed. May 28,

This invent-ion relates to tooth brushes and more especially to a tooth brush serviceable for the massaging of the gums without the possibility of accidentally breaking the skin and perhaps causing infection, as is always a possibility where an ordinary bristle brush is employed, brushes having the massaging effect in addition to the tooth cleaning effect, being made of rubber or its equivalent. The

rubber brushes mentioned are however, as open to objection from a hygenic standpoint, as the old or bristle type of brush.

Accordingly, it is the object of the invention to produce a toothbrush suitable for 1 either cleaning and massaging operations and in one type for both, and which when not in use can be protected from contamination and in that condition, be carried in ones pocket or in a suitable touring case. A further object is to provide a so-called fountain type of brush in which the brush elements form a part of a paste holder but normally is so disposed that its teeth are not accessible to the paste and hence cannot be accidentally charged with the latter.

A further object is to provide a fountain brush as an attachment for a conventional tooth-paste tube, but of such construction that compression alone of the tube shall not be effective to charge the toothed portion of the brush with paste, as a provision against the escape of paste should the device be accidentally dropped or subjected to pressure.

Another object of the invention is to produce a fountain brush of the type outlined at low cost so that, if desired, it may be unitary or permanently associated with a paste tube, and be cast aside when the latter is empty, though it will be understood that a brush of the characterunder consideration may be used with any numberzof paste tubes if the cost is suchv that there would be asubstantial economic waste in providing each paste tube with the/brush attachment. 7

WVith the objects mentioned in view, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and combinations of parts, as hereinafter described and claimed; and order that it may be fully 1928. Serial No. 281,191.

understood, reference is to be had to zthevac- I companying drawing, in which:

Figure :1 represents an elevational view. of a fountain brush embodying the invention with the toothed portion of the brush iincase'd in an airtight cap. 1

Figure 2 is an enlarged view partly .in central ilongitudina'l section, with :cap omitted. Figure 3 is a section taken ':on the line IIIIII of Figure 2. l

Figure 4 is a fragmentary central longitudinal section of a modified construction.

Figure 5 is .a larger sectional view of the construction shown .by Figure 4:, and taken on the line VV of the latter.

Figure 6 is a cross section taken onith'e iline VIV-I of Figure 4:. I

Referring to the-drawing in detail, 1 :indicates a conventional tooth-paste tube of athe compressible or collapsible type, and 2&8 -:a brush which in the preferred form isentirel madeof relatively soft rubber or;the:like,ithe shankand head of-the brush having a longitudinal bore 3. In Figures 1 to 3 inclusive,

the bore is shownas of angular form incross section, and fitting in :the bore :so as .to tbe immovable with the :brush and to stiffen it .is a two-part stiffening vdevice or tube, and the brush has an orifice 4 leading from :the lpore of the head and tube totheit'oothed surace.

The stiffening tube fits in the bore so as to be immovable with respect to the brush, and has an internal thread 6 at the shank end of the brush for screwing :upon :the threaded nipple 7 of the paste-charged tube. The tube .5 also has an orifice '8 registering with the orifice 4. i

A tubular plug9 .fits tightly and non-rotatably inzthe tube 5 and closes .theouterend'o 'f the same and likewise stiffens :the .outer .end of the .head of the :brush, andthe tubular portion .of said plug .has .an orifice 10'normal'ly held out of register with theorifice 8 through the resiliencyof the brush head, rthe arrange- A ment being such that when the paste-tube is grasped, and pressure is applied on the head :end of the brush, the squeezing action thus applied causes the resilient brush to'yield-and the plug atO :advance into the tube :5 until the orifice of the former registers with the orifice 8 of the tube 5. Assuming in this action that the tube and hollow portion of the plug are completely filled with paste and that the latter cannot back-up in the paste tube 1, a charge of paste must pass through the registering orifices 8, 10 and 4 to the toothed face of'the brush, and upon the removal of the pressure on the end of the head of the brush,

the latter reactsand thus withdraws the plug to its original position and cuts oif the further escape of paste through the orifices mentioned, it being of course understood that the V plug 9 bears an immovable relation to the head of the brush by being molded orotherwise tightly secured therein so that the plug shall move in one direction under the compressive action and in the opposite direction under thereactionary actionof the resilient brush.

' After the pressure is removed as described, the brush can be handled in the usual manner for cleaning the teeth and for massaging the gums,pand the latter operation. can be performed without danger of scratching or cutting the gums and hence with practically no danger of the gums becoming infected.

When the use of the brush is discontinued, it can be readily cleansed in water or otherwise and the cleansing agent cannot enter and contaminate the charge of paste within the tube, and as'the paste is used up, the base of the paste tube will be folded or rolled as cusstiffening tube fully charged so that a distomarv and as indicated at the right hand end of Figure 1, for the purpose .of keeping the placed by a new one, any loss'of 'paste remainingin the stiffening tube will be relatively small, as the total waste from allof the pastetubes employed will be measured by the capacity of said stiffening tube.

In order that the brush may be completely sealed from the air when not in use, it is desirable to provide a glass, celluloid or equivalent cap 17 to fit over the brush element and engage the base of the same with an air-tight relation, and for convenience in accomplishing this result, the base of the brush stem may be'equipped with a flange 18 so that the open endof the'cap'may be. forced upon and grip the same sufficiently to avoid accidental dislodgment. I t V 1 In themodified type of construction'shown by' Figures at, 5 and 6, it is preferred that the 'boreof the brush shallbe circular in cross 7 will be forced out through the registering s5 section and the tube and plug numbered respectively in this-instance 11 and 12, of corresponding contour, and in this case it is desirable that the outer end of theplug shall be flattened as at 13, so that if the head end of the brush be grasped and twisted or turned, corresponding movement of the I registering'orifice 14, in communicationwith the orifice 15 of the tube 11, and while holding the parts'in this position compression is applied on the tube 1 so that a charge of paste orifices 15, 14: and 4; to the toothed faceof the brush. To insure proper registration of the orifices 14: and 15, aipin-and-slot connection 16'is provided for the tube 11 and the plug, this connection arresting the twisting movement of the plug at the moment the three orifices are in full alinement. When the twisting pressure is removed, the reaction of the resilient brush restores the parts to their original relationship and thus inhibits the escape of any additional paste even should the pressure on the tube be continued. It will thus be seen that in both cases a predetermined amount of paste is discharged, and that if a greater amount is desired the action: described must be repeated.

VVhile it is a very desirable feature of the invention to provide therubber brush head with resilient rubber teeth for convenience of massaging the gums without injury thereto, it will be apparent that the tooth face of the brush head may of any conventional character without affecting or impairing the required deforming action of said head to make provision for the charging of the teeth with the cleaning agent. t

From the above description, it will be apparent that I have produced a fountain toothpaste brush whichembodies the features of ing from the bore to the toothed face of the brush, of a pair of tubes each fitting tightly in the resilient brush head and movable relatively to each other, one of said tubes having an orifice permanentlycommunicating with the orifice of the brush head and the other constituting a feed tube and having an orifice normally out of register with the orifice of the first-named tube but adapted to register therewith upon deformation of the resilient brush head by the application of force thereto.

2. The combination with a resilient toothed brush head having a shank portion and a toothed face, the head and shank portions having a longitudinal bore and the former an orifice leading from the bore to the toothed face, a stiifening tube within the bore of the head and shank, a compressible paste-charged tube communicating with the shank end of the stiffening tube, a hollow plug fitting in the bore and communicating with the stiffening tube, the last-named tube and said plug being movable relatively and each fixedly secured relative to the brush head, there being an orifice in the said tube and plug with one of said orifices in permanent communication with the orifice in the brush head and the other of said orifices normally out of alinement but adapted to be brought into alinement with the other orifice upon deformation of the brush head upon the application of force thereto so that upon compression of the tube its contents will be discharged onto said brush head.

3. The combination of a compressible paste tube, a brush of resilient material having a toothed face, a longitudinal bore and an orifice leading from the bore to the toothed face, a stiffening tube in the bore having an orifice and secured at one end on the discharge end of the compressible tube, and a hollow plug in the bore and in movable engagement with the stifiening tube and provided with an orifice; one of the last-named pair of orifices being in registration with the orifice of the brush and the other to be brought into such registration by deformation of the brush head by applying force thereon so that upon compression of the tube its contents will be discharged onto said brush head.

4. A resilient toothed brush head having a longitudinal bore and an orifice leading from the bore to the toothed face of the brush head, and a feed tube in said bore having an orifice normally out of alinement with the orifice in the brush head; said tube orifice and brush orifice being adapted to be placed in alinement upon the application of force sufiicient to deform the brush head, the orifices being automatically returned to normal relation upon the release of such force.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

ROBERT W. VARDEMAN. 

